Robinson tops Plant, 18-12

Published: April 25, 2013

Updated: April 26, 2013 at 11:10 AM

TAMPA -
Robinson senior Cornika Wright admitted after the game Wednesday night her last-second pitch to teammate Crystal Ortiz had as much desperation in it as it did planning. But the toss from Wright inside Plant?s 10-yard line an instant before her flag was pulled couldn't have worked out any better if it had been written up months in advance."I saw the girl committing and gave up the pitch and she got in," Wright said. "I thought we'd make it to the end zone, but I thought it might take overtime; there may have been a little desperation, but I just wanted the score."The touchdown, Ortiz?s second of the game, came with eight seconds on the clock and gave the Knights an 18-12 District 15 win against Plant, earning Robinson its second-straight district crown.Robinson (13-1) played solid defense for the first 30 minutes, holding Plant to a Samantha Melo 65-yard interception return and very little on offense. However, with time winding down in the third quarter and a 12-6 lead behind a pair of touchdown passes from Robinson's Deliah Autry to first Sam Ishee then Ortiz, Robinson's sure defense made costly mistakes in three roughing-the-quarterback penalties. The penalties gave Plant a first down on the Knights' 2-yard line.

From there, Panthers quarterback Ashley Hesson connected with Shelby Hall for the tying score.Alonso quarterback Madison Shelquist threw for 119 yards and a touchdown and ran in two scores to help the Ravens defeat Leto 20-7 in the District 16 final at Alonso High.Alonso plays host to Robinson, which defeated Plant, Saturday at 4 p.m. The Ravens have won four-straight district titles.Shelquist help break a 7-7 tie with 34 seconds left before the half after a run from 14 yards out landed her in the end zone. She sealed the deal with 1:23 left in the game - dodging four Leto defenders in the process.Leto had possession inside of its own territory late in the contest. With 3:12 left, Alonso's Iusaella Landa ended all hope of a game-tying drive when she sacked Leto QB Antonice Weaks on fourth down.Shelquist connected with Marissa Ramirez on a 5-yard pass to open up the scoring with 5:00 left in the first quarter. The pass to Ramirez followed a third-down pass to Alexis Rodriguez for 38 yards.Two long-scoring drives and constant defensive pressure on Bloomingdale's quarterback worked heavily in East Bay's favor as the Indians secured the program's fifth district title with a 13-6 win over the Bulls in the District 13 final.The Indians (10-3) will play Plant City in the state first-round play-in game Saturday at 4 p.m.Bloomingdale (10-4) had possession with 11 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter but a game-winning try fell short."We made them burn their timeouts," East Bay coach Michael Cooper said.

tbo (Tampa Bay Online) provides local news and information for Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater and communities throughout Tampa Bay. Originally published by The Tampa Tribune, tbo is now among the portfolio of brands powered by the Tampa Bay Times.